Pumpkin Spice Bars with Bourbon Butter Glaze

It’s time for another pumpkin recipe. I couldn’t hold out any longer so today, I’m sharing these Pumpkin Spice Bars with Bourbon Butter Glaze. The recipe is an adaptation of Averie Cook’s Fudgy Banana Bars with Vanilla Bean Browned Butter Glaze. But these fudgy bars are made ridiculously good by including pumpkin puree, butterscotch chips, and pumpkin pie spice in the ingredients list. They were a hit with the co-workers as well as with the boyfriend. And I couldn’t stop stuffing my face with them. I may or may not have eaten three in one day. THREE IN ONE DAY! It took all of the power I had in me not to eat more. Speaking of pumpkin spice, did you know that Starbucks already rolled out their pumpkin spice flavor? Wait, who didn’t know that? Did you know that rolling out pumpkin spice early causes people to order mass amount of pumpkin spice lattes and frappes? And did you know that this mass exodus to Starbucks to buy all things pumpkin causes Starbucks to RUN OUT OF PUMPKIN SPICE?!

True story. Ken and I went to Starbucks Friday night. Ken ordered a pumpkin spice latte. “I’m sorry, we, we are all out of pumpkin spice right now.” To which Ken replied “don’t you guys know it’s almost October?” He didn’t miss a beat with that comeback. So we left with a discounted Venti Caramel Macchiato and knowing that pumpkin spice would not be available to us until today. And those crazy good pumpkin scones, we will have to do without those for 2 weeks! But at least we can get our pumpkin spice fix with these Pumpkin Spice Bars with Bourbon Butter Glaze. They are so easy to make. They require only one pot for prep. They melt in your mouth and make you scream “FEED ME MORE!”

Preheat your oven to 350. Line an 8x8 baking dish with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray and set aside.

To make the bars: in a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and butterscotch chips, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside for a few minutes to allow to slightly cool so the egg doesn't scramble when you add it. Once the mixture is cooler, add the egg, sugar and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Stir in the pumpkin puree and then add the flour, salt and pumpkin pie spice and stir until combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 33 minutes.

While the bars are baking, make the glaze. Melt 2 tbsp butter in a sauce pan. Add the bourbon and simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until slightly reduced. Remove from heat and whisk in the confectioners sugar and vanilla extract. Gradually add the half and half until the desired consistency is reached. You may need to add more or less than what the recipe calls for. It all depends on your preference.

Once the bars are done baking, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Pour the glaze over the bars and distribute evenly with the back side of a spoon. Allow to cool for 2-4 hours before serving. Once ready to serve, cut into 9 squares. If you prefer smaller squares, you can cut into 12 smaller squares.

Notes

UPDATE: A few readers have asked how to make the glaze without the bourbon. To make the glaze without the bourbon, make the following changes to the glaze recipe:

Omit the bourbon, add two more tablespoons of butter to step three and skip the simmering process. Add two extra tablespoons of half and half or milk, or whatever is needed in order to reach your desired consistency.

Wow, Julie! These bars do look like they would just melt in your mouth. I would probably have a hard time not eating the entire batch. Pumpkin is the best seasonal flavor and I’m sure these are delectable. Pinned to my pumpkin board!

I have pumpkin on my mind year round! We actually have a little local coffee shop in our area that carries pumpkin spice coffee syrup year round. The owner says it’s her favorite flavor so she carries it all year. Yay!

Good on Ken for that zinger! It’s a little unbelievable that such a big company would run out of something they KNOW people love. facepalm. Any ideas for butterscotch substitutes? I love this recipe but that might be difficult to find here :/

These bars look incredible Julie! I would definitely have a hard time just having one – they look so fudgy and I love the butterscotch in here too! Can’t believe they ran out of PSL too – luckily these bars are a perfect fix – that bourbon butter glaze sounds amazing! Pinning !

No pumpkin scones? Aaaargh. I love those. Makes sense… I tried to order one the other day and they said it was a no-go. These bars look phenomenal. They look very fudge-like and moist! The bourbon glaze sends them over the edge. Thanks for sharing the recipe!!

I have never heard of the pumpkin ingredients and I’ll be searching them out. The US is renowned for pumpkin type recipes pie in particular, unlike here in New Zealand were only just catching on. But I will follow the trend and your recipes thanks heaps. Can’t wait to try this.

I think you will LOVE all of the pumpkin recipes that you try. Pumpkin is my favorite baking ingredient so I’m always happy when Fall rolls around so I can start making yummy pumpkin recipes. Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the recipe!

You may omit and add extra half and half and a little extra vanilla. If you love the flavor of vanilla, add an extra tablespoon of vanilla and extra half and half until you reach your desired consistency for the glaze. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions. :)

I updated the recipe to include instructions for an alcohol free glaze. Here is what you will need to do:

Omit the bourbon, add two more tablespoons of butter to step three and skip the simmering process. Add two extra tablespoons of half and half or milk, or whatever is needed in order to reach your desired consistency.